Twitter announced the release of a new app that allows users of Apple TV, Amazon Fire and Xbox One to view live stream video available anywhere on Twitter. This new app is not only free for the user, it also allows people without a Twitter account to see all live video streams on Twitter. It does not require any pay TV subscription.
In addition Twitter also will show some premium content including NFL Thursday night football games and content from the MLB (Baseball), NBA (Basketball pre-game shows), Pac 12 (College Basketball), Campus Insiders (College sports), Cheddar(Business News) and Bloomberg News.
While the app is available on three devices, Apple TV offers viewers the chance to see tweeted video clips in a side by side mode with premium content.
The app will be rolled out in several countries, but the initial availability depends on the box that’s used. While the app for the Apple TV is available globally, the Xbox One will only work in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the UK, and the US. For the Amazon Fire TV you need to be in the US or the UK.
Analyst Comment
While the announcement from Twitter as well as this article is longer than 140 characters, the announcement made quite a splash in the industry. As rumors for a connection between Twitter and Apple have been circulating for quite some time now, the move is generally seen as a way to attract a larger audience into using Twitter. With the increased audience they expect a larger income stream from advertising. This income growth was something that has been missing in recent quarters leading to some deterioration of the stock value.
In addition, there is a good chance that Twitter is seeing how it can enter the paid video streaming industry. If that is the ultimate goal, it would mean that Twitter is entering another business that is only loosely connected to its Twitter business. (NH)
